Kentucky

KENTUCKY DOES NOT COMPENSATE PEOPLE WHO WERE WRONGFULLY CONVICTED AND IMPRISONED

Posted on May 28, 2009
Kentucky is one of 32 states that do not provide compensation for people who have been wrongfully convicted and imprisoned.  Prosecutors in Kentucky are given absolute immunity even though there is legislation that allows the State to pay any jury awards against prosecutors...

the kentucky Office of circumlocution -Kentucky State government steals charles dickens blueprints

Posted on May 28, 2009
  Rant by LawReader Senior Editor Stan Billingsley ? May 27, 2009   Charles Dickens created a fictional government ?Office of Circumlocution? in his novel Little Dorrit.   This office was the ultimate representation of the red tape inherent in government institutions...

Ky. Company which manufactures BA machine faces $2 million in fines for flaunting court orders re: software code

Posted on May 27, 2009
   A Kentucky based company, CMI of Owensboro, manufactures the Breathalyzer machine used in Kentucky and other states, is facing more than $2 million in fines because of their refusal to release the source codes as ordered by courts in at least two  states including Minnesota and Florida...

Bad Science and the Law ? Crime Labs Under Fire in National Study

Posted on May 27, 2009
May 26, 2009 A report issued in February by the National Academy of Sciences identifies bad science being used by the courts in criminal trials. The report says crime lab analyses of physical evidence is often handled by poorly trained technicians who then exaggerate the accuracy of their methods in court...

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Divorce Courts Ignore Fed. Law and Harass our troops and Small Businesses

Posted on May 26, 2009
 m.examiner.com  May 25, 2009   Memorial Day is an opportunity to thank our troops, and open our eyes to the disgraceful way they are treated by divorce courts. The bias that divorce courts in my home state of Virginia exhibit against males, people who start small businesses, and breadwinner spouses in general has been ably chronicled by [...

President Obama Nominates Judge Sonia Sotomayor for Supreme Court

Posted on May 26, 2009
President Obama has chosen Judge Sonia Sotomayor of the Federal Appeals Court as his nominee for the Supreme Court, officials said on Tuesday, and has scheduled an announcement for 10:15 a.m. at the White House. Ms. Sotomayor, 54, will be the first Hispanic to serve on the Supreme Court if her nomination is approved by the Senate.

U.S. Supreme Court weakens Right To Counsel ? Rules police can initiate suspect?s questioning after he has requested counsel

Posted on May 26, 2009
  The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that police, under certain circumstances, can initiate an interrogation of a suspect without the defendant’s lawyer being present. By a 5-4 vote, the conservative majority overruled a 23-year-old Supreme Court decision that barred the police from initiating questioning after a defendant asserted the right to an attorney at [...

WHY HAVE TWO ATTORNEY GENERALS NEGLECTED TO INTERVENE IN THE FEN PHEN SUIT RE: HANDLING OF $20,000,000 IN CHARITABLE TRUST FUNDS?

Posted on May 26, 2009
Article by LawReader Senior Editor Stan Billingsley  - May 26, 2009    We are puzzled as to the inaction of two Kentucky Attorney General?s in failing to protect the public interest in asserting a claim for the $20 million dollars being held in a Charitable Trust in the Fen Phen case...

Study shows that on Oral Arguments, When the Justices Ask You more Questions, Be Prepared to Lose the Case

Posted on May 25, 2009
    ?A few years ago, a second-year law student at Georgetown unlocked the secret to predicting which side will win a case in the U .S. Supreme Court based on how the argument went. Her theory has been tested and endorsed by Chief Justice Roberts and has been confirmed by elaborate studies from teams of professors...

Ky. Supreme Court Limits Number of ?Published? Decisions by Court of Appeals

Posted on May 23, 2009
LawReader will begin identifying Ct. of Appeals Opinions , in our weekly synopsis, that we feel should have been published due to their importance and relevance.  We welcome comments by members of the bench and bar on this topic. LawReader weekly publishes a synopsis of every Kentucky Appellate Decision...

Should we apply the lowest common denominator rule to the selection of Supreme Court Justices?

Posted on May 20, 2009
  The classic example of an attempt to apply this rule occurred in the 1970s, when President Nixon nominated G. Harold Carswell for a position on the Supreme Court. It was widely agreed that Carswell was unqualified, in fact mediocre, but that did not dissuade Sen...

Deputy chief justice Scott to be guest speaker at Drug Court graduation May 22 for Rowan, Bath/Menifee programs

Posted on May 20, 2009
FRANKFORT, Ky. — Supreme Court Deputy Chief Justice Will T. Scott will be the guest speaker at a combined graduation ceremony for Rowan County Drug Court and Bath/Menifee Drug Court on Friday, May 22. Six participants will be recognized for completing the program ? five from Rowan County and one from Bath County...

Has Sen. McConnell had the Moses Penalty Imposed on him?

Posted on May 20, 2009
  It is conceded by everyone that Sen. McConnell is a strong leader of the Republican Party.  He has lead the Kentucky Republican Party out of the wilderness and virtually single-handedly breathed new life into the two party system in Kentucky.  In doing this he has offended some...

U.S. Attorneys and Fen Phen lawyers argue over interpretation of Jury Verdict regarding how much should be paid back by Gallion and Cunningham.

Posted on May 19, 2009
Federal District Judge Danny Reeves, issued instructions to the jury in the Fen-Phen attorneys criminal trial, asking the jury to determine what funds should be paid back to the class action claimants.   Defense lawyers for William Gallion and Shirley Cunningham are arguing that the indictment and the jury instructions say that only $30 million was [...

U.S. Sup. Ct. Refuses to Hear Medical Marijuana Case

Posted on May 18, 2009
On Monday the U.S. Supreme Court sidestepped the politically explosive debate over whether federal drug laws trump the use of so-called legalized “medical marijuana.” The decision leaves unclear how local districts must comply if a state law, passed by referendum, allowing the limited use of medical marijuana conflicts with the federal government’s tough anti-narcotic stance...

Prosecutors Seek Removal of Judge on Drew Peterson case. They claim bias since he has previously sanctioned them for withholding exculpatory evidence. Will prosecutors get to handpick their judge?

Posted on May 18, 2009
(May 18) - Former police officer Drew Peterson pleaded not guilty Monday to killing his third wife, whose death was reclassified as a homicide after the suburban officer’s fourth wife disappeared.   A prosecution bid to change the judge in the proceeding stalled a defense plan to seek reduced bail for Peterson...

Indicted Judge, R. Cletus Maricle granted bail pending Federal Trial on vote fraud charges

Posted on May 16, 2009
U.S. District Judge Danny C. Reeves denied the requests of the U.S. Attorney to keep Circuit Judge R. Cletus Maricle and Charles Wayne Jones, the county’s Democratic election commissioner in jail while they await trial on various election fraud charges...

Cocaine, Heroin and Marihuana Found in Tests of Air and Water in Madrid and Barcelona

Posted on May 16, 2009
The following news story raises an interesting question about drug testing in general.  If the air is polluted with controlled substances, is it possible that a person who breathes this air may test positive?     May 15, 2009   www.hiexpress.com   Researchers have found minute traces of cocaine, heroin and cannabis in the air of the two Spanish cities The [...

U.S. Supreme Court Still to Rule on Seven Big Cases This Term.

Posted on May 16, 2009
U.S. Supreme Court Still to Rule on Seven Big Cases This Term. Voting rights: At stake is the federal government’s authority to prevent discriminatory voting changes through a provision of the landmark Voting Rights Act. This section forces all or parts of 16 states, many in the South, to submit proposed election changes to the Justice [...

Detroit Judge Prosecuted for Trial Error ? Perjured Testimony allowed to protect informant

Posted on May 15, 2009
  COMPILED BY JOE SWICKARD AND BEN SCHMITT ? May 12, 2009  Freep.com   Felony charges against former Wayne County Circuit Judge Mary Waterstone should be dismissed because it is unfair to criminalize rulings, even erroneous ones, made during a trial, her attorneys argued in a written pleading filed Monday...

Court of Appeals Rules in Russell County Clerk?s Case that Incumbent Clerk Need Not Nourish a Viper in the Nest and May fire Deputy Clerk who runs against Her

Posted on May 15, 2009
  The court of appeals issued an important decision in a Russell County case holding that a Deputy County Clerk had no constitutional right to declare her candidacy to run against her boss, the incumbent Circuit Clerk, and retain her job.   Deputy Russell County Clerk Stacie Cook sued Russell County Clerk Lisha Popplewell and Russell County alleging [...

William Kathman & Jay Vaughn provide useful update for Motor Vehicle Insurance Law

Posted on May 15, 2009
LawReader Users Hon. William Kathman and Hon. Jay Vaughn of Busald, Funk & Zevely of Florence have written a detailed update of the law relating to Motor Vehicle Insurance Law, updated for 2009.   This useful article full of citations can be read at:  MOTOR VEHICLE INSURANCE LAW UPDATE   This will be accessible for non-members for one [...

NCAA Ignores Court Ruling. Continues to Forbid College Athletes from Hiring an Attorney

Posted on May 14, 2009
ESPN - An Ohio Judge struck down an NCAA bylaw prohibiting college baseball players from using legal advisors to negotiate with major league baseball teams has ruled that the NCAA appears to be in contempt of that ruling. Judge Tygh Tone ordered the NCAA to show cause within seven days why it should not be held [...

New York Ct. of Appeals Strikes Down GPS Tracking Without Warrant

Posted on May 13, 2009
In a 4-to-3 ruling, the New York State Court of Appeals ruled on Tuesday that the State Police violated a criminal suspect?s rights under the State Constitution when it placed a GPS tracking device inside the bumper of his van without obtaining a warrant...

Sign Up Online for KBA Law Update Program this fall

Posted on May 13, 2009
You may register online for this year?s KBA regional Law Update CLE program by following this link, http://www.kybar.org/Default.aspx?tabid=474 or you may mail your registration card to us.  You may also download the PDF Registration Form and fax it to (502) 564-3225 or mail it to us at Kentucky Bar Association, 514 West Main Street, Frankfort, [...

Judge Susan Gibson gets it right in McCoy sentence. Judge asks: ?are we mad at this defendant or are we afraid of this defendant??

Posted on May 12, 2009
  Editorial by LawReader Senior Editor Stan Billingsley    May 12, 2009   Jefferson Circuit Judge Susan Schultz Gibson was required this week to sentence 21 year old Kathryn McCoy for Tampering with Physical Evidence. After her child was stillborn, McCoy concealed the child?s body...

Google Now Offers Free Telephone information Service?this is really useful?and the price can?t be beaten. Check this out!!

Posted on May 05, 2009
Here’s a number worth putting in your cell phone, or your home phone speed dial: 1-800-goog411 or 1-800-466-4411. This is an awesome service from Google, and it’s free — great when you are on the road. Don’t waste your money on information calls and don’t waste your time manually dialing the number...

What?s going on here?Is U.S. Supreme Court Pendulum Swinging Back in Favor of Criminal Defendants?

Posted on May 05, 2009
May 5, 2009  - By LawReader Senior Editor Stan Billingsley    Something is going on with the U.S. Supreme Court.  This is beginning to look like a real trend.  Four recent decisions (by a Supreme Court which inlcudes Thomas, Alioto, Roberts and Scalia,)  have definitely favored criminal defendants...

U.S. Supreme Court previously forbade death penalty for juveniles, now will consider life sentences

Posted on May 04, 2009
The Supreme Court agreed on Monday to consider whether the reasoning that led it to strike down the death penalty for juvenile offenders four years ago should also apply to sentences of life without the possibility of parole. The court accepted two cases on the issue, both from Florida and neither involving a killing...

U.S. Supreme Court Limits Corporate Liability in Superfund Cases for companies who had only limited responsibility for toxic spills

Posted on May 04, 2009
The Supreme Court on Monday made it harder for the government to recover the often enormous costs of environmental cleanups from companies with only minor or limited responsibility for toxic spills. Skip to next paragraph The decision tightened the reach of the Superfund law, known formally as the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, by [...

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